Park(ing) Day 2008

For our 2008 events and projects we collaborated with some of NYC’s most respected environmental organizations including Transportation Alternatives, Solar One, RecycleThis!, Lower East Side Ecology Center, Brooklyn Botanic Garden/Greenbridge, Council on the Environment of NYC, The Open Planning Project, Trees NY, and Brooklyn Compost Project. We participated in Municipal Arts Society‘s follow-up work on their community visioning project, Imagine Flatbush 2030. We partnered with two up-and-coming groups, schools recycling activists Educating Tomorrow and environmental social network GreenEdge Collaborative, to create the Flatbush Supper Club. And we helped to found the Flatbush CommUNITY Garden, an urban farm and green space that offers our neighborhood’s diverse residents a place to come together to grow vegetables, fruits and flowers.

We would like to thank community stalwarts Flatbush Food Co-op, Flatbush Development Corporation, Brooklyn Public Library (Flatbush and Cortelyou branches), P.S. 217, Midwood Martial Arts, Vox Pop, Flatbush Artists, and Ditmas Workspace for their support in the form of in-kind donations, meeting space, and organizational support. A special thanks goes to Flatbush Food Co-op for designating Sustainable Flatbush as the recipient of their National Cooperative Grocers Association award in early 2008; this was our first grant! We would like to thank all the individuals who offered their homes for Sustainable Flatbush meetings and events. And we would ESPECIALLY like to thank all the volunteers past, present and future who make our events and projects happen… you are the key to our neighborhood-based sustainability movement!!

Here is a list of Sustainable Flatbush activities in 2008:

Flatbush CommUNITY Garden
(began in April)
After a series of visioning and planning meetings, the garden became a reality this summer. We cleared land, built raised beds, planted late-season crops, and set up a small composting site. The first garden meeting of 2009 has been scheduled for January 28th (details TBA).

Flatbush Supper Club (began in November)
As part of GreenEdge Collaborative’s Neighborhood Supper Club network, this group meets regularly to share potluck meals and discuss environmental topics. Sign up here to find out about the next event!

January
Post-Holiday Electronics Recycling Event
Global Warming teach-in at Brooklyn College

February
Greening Flatbush urban gardening conference

April
Arbor Day Street Tree Walking Tour
Ditmas Park West Tree Planting

May
Flatbush CommUNITY Garden kick-off

June
Newkirk Avenue Block Party

July
Neighborhood Solar Forum

August
Summer Streets Feeder Bike Ride

September
Flatbush Frolic Environmental Fair
Park(ing) Day 2008 / Cortelyou Road Park

October
Flatbush CommUNITY Garden composting workshop

November
Flatbush FreeMeet
Flatbush Daffodil Project
Flatbush Supper Club kick-off

December
Flatbush Supper Club Zero Waste brunch

Thank you to all our newsletter subscribers for your interest and support of our work. Here’s to a great 2009!